(ISO: Geneva) -- World Standards Day is celebrated each year on October 14 to pay tribute to the efforts of thousands of experts worldwide who collaborate within the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to develop voluntary international standards that facilitate trade, spread knowledge, and disseminate technological advances.

The theme of this year’s World Standards Day message is “Standards make the world accessible for all.” With at least 650 million people globally affected by some kind of disability, combined with the rising numbers of older people in the world’s population—one-quarter of all citizens are 60 or older, according to the United Nations—the issue of accessibility to products and services has become more important than ever.

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